Chapter 23
I’m lost. Both Ajax and Iza were busy doing jobs for Karius this morning, so that left me with nothing to do but sit cross-legged on my bed thinking about everything that Ember told me yesterday.
Knowing that my life is tied to every single vampire in this court makes me feel sick.
The prince already has enemies, if Julian is anything to go by, and if even one of them learns of our connection, then it won’t be long before I become their next target.
That’s why I left my room to explore the castle—my own thoughts were starting to suffocate me, and now I actually have no idea where I am.
I told you that you were lost five minutes ago, but alas, you thought you knew better.
How exactly is this helping, Athriel?
Just pointing out the facts.
Well, don’t.
An annoying chuckle fills my head, and I roll my eyes. I’ve been walking around for at least two hours, and at least forty minutes of that have been me trying to find my way back to my room. I’m pretty sure that one of these hallways has got to lead back to it, eventually.
My stomach grumbles in the quiet, making me keenly aware of exactly how hungry I am.
Surely in a place this big, they should have some kind of special button or something that you can press when you’re lost, but then I guess they don’t need it with their heightened senses.
It is so convenient that the prince’s powers only appear when I don’t want them to, but when I could actually use them, they’re nowhere to be found.
I curse under my breath as I stand in the middle of a corridor, hands on my hips, looking around.
The entire place looks like I’ve been here before, but then so did the last five hallways I turned down.
I decide to try the handle on the large wooden door I’m standing in front of.
If there’s a window inside the room, I can at least tell if I’m on the right side of the palace, and that would be a start.
I try twisting the knob, but of course, it’s locked.
I tilt my head back in frustration before moving down the hallway and trying several other doors. All locked. Of course.
I’m just about to give up when I notice a door that is slightly ajar at the far end of the hallway. I move slowly toward it, unsure whether I’m even supposed to be down here, though the prince didn’t give any strict rules about where I could go, only that I shouldn’t escape.
Since when do you follow rules?
Since my last plan failed to get me out of here. I’m playing the long game, Athriel.
Ah, just like I advised when we first arrived here. Sarcasm drips from his tone.
You just love to gloat, don’t you?
When the moment calls for it.
I push gently against the door, and a cool sensation creeps up my spine at the sound of it creaking. I look back, wondering if I should just forget this entire plan, but I’m tired and hungry and just want to find a way to get back to my room.
“Hello,” I call out into the room, but only the light whistle of wind answers, telling me that there must be a window somewhere inside.
As the door fully opens, I notice that the floating starlight orbs in here are far dimmer than around the rest of the castle, and the room is covered in shadows that make it harder to see.
I notice white sheets thrown over furniture as though the room is no longer in use.
I brush my finger against an empty shelf, and the tip ends up coated in a thick layer of dust. This place seems abandoned, unlike the rest of the palace, which always seems to be thriving with either guards or servants.
Despite myself and the nagging in my stomach that tells me I should turn around, I walk inside, my eyes slowly adjusting to the darkness.
In the middle of the room, a cloth covers what looks to be a large bed.
I peel back the corner and find the sheets rumpled and unmade, as though someone had just jumped out of it in a hurry.
The room is far bigger than the one I occupy.
The wood beneath my feet creaks, and I pause for a moment, frightened that somebody is going to come and catch me in the act, though I’m not even sure if what I’m doing is wrong.
I move toward another covered piece of furniture, and curiosity gets the better of me. I lift it up and find myself sucked into a coughing fit as the dust floats around the room.
“Damn it.”
When I finally stop spluttering, I turn back and find a messy desk filled with old, stained parchment, jars of ink, and dried quills. I pick up a ripped piece of paper and discover part of a letter scribbled onto it. My eyes strain to make out the scratchy script.
Dear brother,
If you are reading this letter, then I have had to leave.
I know you disagree with the choices I have made, but all that I do is to protect you, Father, and the court.
I know you will be angry that I did not inform you of my departure in person, but you would have only followed, and that would have put everyone we love in danger.
War is coming, Brother, and this may be our last chance to stop it. The imp—
The page ends there, and I can’t help but wonder what else he said and who ripped it.
Perhaps the prince himself. I find myself drawn to the desk, my hand flitting through the scattered mess in hopes of finding more pieces of the puzzle.
This must be Karius’s brother’s room. The brother who died just before the war began.
There were already rumors that his death somehow sparked the war, and that letter confirms it. The question is, where was he goin—
“You should not be in here.”
The voice startles me, making me turn so quickly that I drop and smash a jar of ink on the floor. A boy stands still in the shadows. Damn. He’s probably one of the servants, and if he tells the prince that I was snooping, then I could end up right back in the dungeon.
“Sorry, I got lost.”
He steps forward, and instinctively, I find myself moving back until the press of the desk bites into my back, giving me nowhere to go.
“You are not lost. You are exactly where you’re supposed to be.”
His voice is a hushed whisper that sends a cold chill up my spine. He speaks in a voice that sounds unnatural, as though it should belong to someone far older.
You need to get out of here, Athriel says. Something is wrong with the boy.
He’s blocking the door.
Then move him.
Despite Athriel’s words, I stand still, my body failing to follow the command. The boy sniffs the air.
“Your fear is palpable, so rich I can almost taste it.” My heart thunders in my chest at his words. “My essence calls to you. Come closer.”
I try to back up, but the stupid table stops me. My hand fumbles behind me, scrambling over the desk’s surface for anything I can use as a weapon. My fingers catch the edge of something sharp. I clutch it tight before quickly holding it out in front of me. A letter opener. It will have to do.
“Don’t come any closer,” I warn.
He tilts his head slowly, watching me through the darkness, and I can feel his gaze burning into me like a live flame.
“If I cut you, would I taste the essence of home?”
I’ve fought vampires in the past, and yet something about this boy and the way he’s speaking is scaring me more than any vampire ever could. He moves forward, and my hand tightens around the metal opener.
“Stay back!” My voice breaks at the end, and I curse the fear that clutches my heart in its grip. I need to get out of here. I need to get away.
“Shh. Let me open you…I will make it quick, I promise, and then all will be right.”
Kill him before he kills you. Athriel’s voice booms inside my head.
I kick out my leg, and my foot slams into the boy’s chest. He flies across the room, landing in a crumbled pile in the corner, but before relief can swallow me whole, he jumps back up at an unnatural speed.
What the hell.
Run!
This time, I don’t hesitate to listen to Athriel’s warning, and my feet slam against the wooden floor as I bound out of the door and into the hallway.
I race down the corridors with no idea or care for where I’m going, only that it is away from that boy.
I didn’t even get a good look at his face, so I have no idea what he even looks like.
My heart pounds inside my chest like an out-of-time drum, and sweat sticks to every inch of my flesh.
My legs ache as I push them to move faster, not stopping as I round corners, only pushing myself faster as I race toward the unknown.
For a while, I feel the presence of the boy behind me like a shadow that creeps on the walls and slithers its way around the place.
I keep moving, never slowing, even after the sensation disappears and his presence seems to diminish.
I turn a corner and, for the first time, risk a look back, but I see nothing.
That doesn’t stop me. I keep running, making turn after turn until I find a darkened hallway that I slip into.
I bend over to catch my breath as my chest burns with a mixture of fear and adrenaline.
My eyes flit around the space, expecting him to appear around the corner at any minute, but as time passes, a slow feeling of relief settles in me.
I still have no idea where I am, and the need to return to the safety of my room is palpable. I start to creep out of the hallway, but the sound of a familiar voice stops me in my tracks.
“The attacks are increasing. Just last night, two more guards were found dead in their homes. They had families, Karius, people who will miss them. It is causing unrest.” The voice belongs to Eamon and comes from a room far down the darkened hallway.
I know that I should leave, but something about the sound of his voice draws me in.
I inch closer to the room. The door is slightly ajar, allowing me a small gap to see him standing across from Karius as they both stare down at a piece of parchment spread across the wooden desk between them.
Painted onto the wall behind them is the entire realm of Soliys, with the kingdom of Kalyn standing large and proud to the west while Rumyr, almost half the size, sits to the east. I’ve never seen such a large and intricate rendition before, and I cannot tear my gaze away.
I risk a step forward, my eyes sweeping over our land, taking in the sprawling mountains and vast forests that separate the four courts: Shadows, Starlight, Minds, and Visions.
Rumyr is home to the three remaining courts—Nightmares, Colors, and Weavers—all ruled by power-hungry vampires with more magic than the gods should ever have allowed.
My eyes glance back at the dense forest tucked behind a tall mountain range, and my throat bobs.
It’s not marked on the map, but the human settlement is hidden somewhere in there.
The place Tori should have been now. My eyes burn as it truly sinks in that she never even got the taste of freedom before a vampire snuffed her life out.
“Fuck.” I jump as Karius slams a fist down on the desk. All thoughts of Tori fall to the back of my mind as I remember where I am. The prince blows out a breath as he looks at Eamon.
“The nobles’ suspicions are rising. They are starting to ask questions,” Eamon says.
“I know, but they cannot learn of this. If they suspect a thing, then you know what will happen.”
Eamon nods before walking over to the window and staring out at the view for a long moment.
“It’s happening again, isn’t it? Just like before. I fear that war is coming, and we cannot keep it hidden for much longer.”
“We have no choice,” Karius says.
“Kaia and I are working around the clock to clean up the bodies, but we cannot sustain this.”
“Take Ivana and Ajax with you next time. Until the ceremonies are complete, we do not have a choice.”
“The humans could become a problem again.”
Karius shakes his head.
“Things are different now. They fear us.” His words sicken me, even more so because I know they are true. “It will keep them in line.”
Eamon turns to look at him, his dark eyes shrouded with worry. “I hope you’re right, Brother.”
Sensing that their conversation is about to end, I hurry back the way I came.
I speed down the hallway, taking a swift turn at the bottom as my mind reels from what Eamon said about a war and its connection to the vampires that have been turning up dead.
I remember Cora first mentioning it when she thought I had been the one killing them.
But why would a few dead vampires start a wa—
My body slams against a hard chest, and I scream before I slash at them with the opener that is still clutched in my hand.
A firm grip wraps around my wrist with ease, stilling my attempt.
“Get off me!” I scream as they push me against the wall.
“Calm down.” The voice commands, and I immediately recognize the deep tone, but how the hell did he get here so fast?
“Karius?”
I try to push against him, but he grabs hold of both of my wrists, pinning them to the wall above me.
“Get off me,” I hiss.
“No.” His dark eyes pierce into mine, sending shivers down my spine. An intense moment passes as my chest heaves up and down, my breathing the only sound in the quiet space. “Spying on me is a sure way to get yourself into trouble.”
“What are you going to do, kill me?”
His voice drops to a whisper. “There are far more wicked things I have in mind than killing you, little witch.”
A burning heat fills my core at his words, and I hate how my body reacts to him. It’s this damn bond. It’s the only explanation.
“And I wasn’t spying on you. I was lost,” I say in a bid to take the attention off my traitorous body.
He cocks his brow. “Then instead of standing outside my study like a spy, you should have knocked and asked for help.”
“I don’t need your help.”
“No? Because the skittering of your heart says otherwise.”
“Are you going to let me go?” I growl.
He shrugs. “I don’t know, I quite like seeing you in this position.”
“Well, just the sight of you makes me feel sick.”
He laughs at this before releasing my hands, but not before plucking the letter opener out of my hand.
“Wouldn’t want you getting any silly ideas now, would we?” he tells me as he pockets it. “Now, are you going to tell me how you really ended up outside my study?”
I pause for a minute, contemplating whether I should say or not. Hearing what he said in that room with Eamon, clearly, something is going on.
“There was a strange boy. I thought he was chasing me, but I’m not sure…” I say, leaving out the part about him finding me in his brother’s room.
All signs of humor leave his face.
“Did he hurt you?”
I shake my head. “No. It was just strange, that’s all.”
He nods, but something dark fills his eyes.
“I’ll walk you back to your room. Come.”